Before it goes, I'll just add my perspective. We'll be sharing parental responsibility with the local authority for the first few months, so on that alone they have a responsibility to make sure we're providing a safe environment. Other hoops we have to jump through include being able to demonstrate we have parenting skills, and that we understand that life after children is very different. If the children go back into care because we decide we can't cope, that would be a devastating blow to them.

Staying calm in the face of hoop-jumping is looked upon favourably

What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!

If they're fussy where to place dogs (or cats) after they've had a terrible time in the past (for whatever reason), then it follows that you have to be even more careful with children. If you don't then they risk further damage and who'd wish that on a child who's had a history of abandonment or worse. Jumping through the hoops is a good thing!

"Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were and ask why not.” George Bernard Shaw

chris.ph wrote:got sent home from work today, bloody doctor said i had a "bug" no s@@t batman main problem is im working in an alzheimers ward and a osteo ward in the hospital in bridgend so i cant spread the bug to the oldies, im going in tomorrow and im staying in the car to do my paperwork

Warning psycho releases virus in Hospital while disguised as a workman many infected.

Well done Dotsie. Every step brings your family closer.

Of all the forces in the universe, the hardest to overcome is the force of habit. Gravity is easy-peasy by comparison.

No Q, not always. The vast majority of parents who, by some accident of biology, find themselves holding a brand new tiny human being for the very first time actually are prepared to give that little one their very best shot at a life in which they can fulfill their greatest potential. At that moment of introduction they find a ferocious love inside themselves for their child that they never imagined it was possible to feel. Love that would even kill to protect from outside harm. And, what is more, the majority of parents in the lands where you and I live, Q, do their best to be GOOD ENOUGH parents. They will never be perfect....but who is? I'm putting the case of the 'good enough' parent today because it was on this day 25 years ago that I pushed into the world the beautiful, wonderful little entity who is my daughter......currently out at the pub with her best friend I'm on the side of parents AND kids all over the world.How do I feel today?Old

Well said Janet! And Happy Birthday to your little girl!

“It is the peculiar nature of the world to go on spinning no matter what sort of heartbreak is happening.”― Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees:

Love you Susanne! She may be 25 now, but Gilly will ALWAYS be my little girl When I came to terms with that fact in my relationship with my own parents, that was when I felt life had been put into perspective and i knew where i was in the grand scheme of things! That was the point when our roles reversed in terms of care and provision but none of us actually said it.I know that Philip Larkin wrote, 'They f*** you up, your Mum and Dad......', and it's true on so many levels isn't it?Conversely, no child arrives with an operator's manual and we're all stumbling around in the dark when it comes to parenting!As the kids, of whatever age, we have a say in all this. The blame culture neglects to mention this.

Dotsie.......you will both be just fine....mum's instinct!

Today, I'm feeling positive! Must have a special aura because all kinds of positive things and meetings happened today

Feeling pretty chuffed just now - simply because I am mistress of my own destiny from hereon! I'm on the downhill track now to getting the book out there as today I got the bank account details for the writers editorial services site I'm setting up and this afternoon I got my first batch of ISBN numbers (you have to get a minimum of 10) and Milele Safari will be on the UK ISBN database very soon!

All I have to do now is get the paperback and eReader files into order (they're pretty much done already just need a few last minute tweaks) and then its off to the print on demand peeps with another cheque but hopefully not too much since all they're doing is taking their print production costs out of the pot so I take the lion's share of the profits after the retailer takes their slice.

Q - commiserations on your own literary ventures and other career prospects, but if you ever decide to self-publish then come and have a chat 'cos I'm going to be putting out several other titles out in the next 6 months so I should have plenty of practice with the pre-press side of things that I can share around

"Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were and ask why not.” George Bernard Shaw